We’re Going to Find the Monster

Malorie Blackman, illus. Dapo Adeola
Puffin
Age 3-5

Charlie and Eddie set off to find ‘the monster.’ They go over a shimmering ocean and up a huge, high mountain, encountering a tiger, a hungry wolf and even a whale along the way. They eventually find the monster – who is in fact their older brother – hiding under his bedclothes ready to pounce and tickle them both.

This story is a celebration of the power of imagination and family fun. The cumulative text is a joy to read aloud, and children will enjoy hearing it again and again. We find out the whale is really a goldfish and the tiger a stripey cat. The illustrations are warm and colourful adding to the storytelling.

One of the main characters has vitiligo and there is a link to find out more information about this condition on the inside cover.

Watch the story read aloud

Share the story

Read Aloud
Read the story aloud to your child. It’s worth having a think about how you will read it before starting – there are places where you can get louder and others where you might decide to whisper.

Join in
When your child is familiar with the story encourage them to join in with parts such as ‘He’ll be grumpy and hungry.’ and ‘Look out there’s a….!’ ‘We’re Going to find the monster!

Talk about the book
Share your favourite pages and talk together about what is happening in the story and illustrations.
Talk about what all the places and scary creatures in the story really were – for example see if your child can find what the tiger, dog or whale were, the high mountain or the shimmering ocean
Talk about any words your child is unfamiliar with eg ‘shimmering’ and ‘fiend’
If your child notices Charlie’s skin is different to Eddie’s, you could talk about this together perhaps using the link below. (This link is also in the inside cover of the book).

Things to make and do

Play the story
Go on an imaginary monster hunt around the house and garden pretending you are going up mountains through jungles and past lakes. could imagine you are going past wild animals too – using pets or soft toys.  Practise creeping and whispering as you go. Playing the story would be even more fun if someone can play the monster waiting to chase and tickle!

Make a story map
After you have been on a monster hunt make a big map together like the one in the story of the imaginary places you went. You could encourage your child to do most of the drawing and then you could write the labels for them.

Play a word game
Have fun describing the monster ‘He’ll be grumpy and prickly’ – you could use words from the story and add some of your own, see how many you can think of together to make a really long list.

Find out More

Read more books by author Malorie Blackman Home page – Malorie Blackman ~ Author of Noughts and Crosses

Other picture books include Jessica Strange illustrated by Alison Bartlettand I want a Cuddle illustrated by Joanne Partis

Books for younger readers include Betsey Biggalow and The Girl Wonder series and Space Race

Read more books by illustrator Dapo Adeola

Hey You! Written and Edited by Dapo Adeola

Look Up! and Clean Up! written by Nathan Bryon

My Dad is a Grizzly Bear written by Swapna Haddow

Find out more about vitiligo Home – The Vitiligo Society